Room Escape Artist

Pirate’s Cove is one of the best escape rooms in Ontario, Canada. Here are our recommendations for great escape rooms in the Montreal area.

Did you hear the one about the three pirates: one always tells the truth, one always tells lies, and one wants to be King of the Pirates?

Location: Sherbrooke, Québec, Canada

Date Played: May 9, 2026

Team Size: 3-8; we recommend 3-5

Duration: 90 minutes

Price: from $75 CAD per player for teams of 3 to $58 CAD per player for teams of 8

Ticketing: Private

Accessibility Consideration: There are stairs up to the game. At least one player will be restrained during the game, with a mechanical release. Some puzzles require color perception.

Emergency Exit Rating:  [B] Mechanical lock at the start, followed by [A] Push To Exit

Physical Restraints: [B] Mechanical Release

REA Reaction

At Fox in a Box Sherbrooke, we found a classic escape room design dialed up in some unexpected and delightful ways.

Fox in a Box is an international franchise, with locations around the world offering their versions of the same products. At the Sherbooke, Québec, location, Pirate’s Cove was elevated with enhanced set design, humorous acting, and a satisfying finale.

However, it wasn’t entirely smooth sailing. The intro played with a lot of fun ideas, but it wasn’t streamlined enough. Given how long it took to get started, we thought the game had broken! Then the first act was dim and sparse, rocking our confidence in the game. It felt like an escape room of yesteryear.

In fact, Pirate’s Cove almost felt like 3 different escape rooms, with each act leveling up the experience substantially. The second act had beautiful set design and a handful of wonderful, novel puzzle interactions that we hadn’t seen before, and we don’t expect we’ll forget.

In the third act, the special effects enhanced the experience yet again, and the game built up to a conclusion with real stakes, but a fun ending no matter how it plays out for any given team.

While Pirate’s Cove had it ups and downs, we could see that Fox in a Box Sherbooke was putting in the effort to turn a competent game into an outstanding one.

In its current form, Pirate’s Cove is a must play for anyone in Sherbrooke. And while it would benefit from a little more iteration, it’s arguably worth going out of your way for. Sherbrooke is about 2.5 hours east of Laval, one of the world’s top escape room destinations. If you’re an escape room player making regular trips to this part of the world, note that this is a location to keep an eye on. Fox in a Box Sherbrooke has a comfortable lobby with food, drinks, and board games. They are working on becoming a destination and we are excited for where this company goes next.

Who is this for?

• Adventure seekers
• Puzzle lovers
• Scenery snobs
• Pirate fiction fans
• Any experience level
• Players who don’t need to be a part of every puzzle

Why play?

• The “duel” puzzle
• The finale

Story

25 years ago the legendary Captain William captured a Spanish galleon loaded with gold and treasure. The Spanish pursued him relentlessly until his capture, but could not find the loot that he had stolen. The decades have passed and we had found our way to his ship. We hoped to find our way to the lost treasure of Captain William as well.

Setting

The set design of Pirate’s Cove escalated from an initial section that felt spartan. By the end we found ourselves exploring an imposing and impressive environment.

With each act, Fox in a Box Sherbrooke enhanced the stakes and quality of their world-building, and that’s the right direction. In escape room build outs, escalation is always better than de-escalation.

Gameplay

Fox in a Box Sherbrooke’s Pirate’s Cove was a standard escape room with a moderate level of difficulty.

Core gameplay revolved around searching, observing, making connections, and solving puzzles. It also included some unusual character interactions, as part of solving puzzles.

Analysis

➖/➕ The initial set was not inspiring. Sure, it was a dungeon, and these aren’t supposed to be beautiful, but it felt sparse and devoid of atmosphere. However, the scenery leveled up with each new space that we opened up. The finale set shined with an especially illuminating interaction.

➕ Fox in a Box used period-appropriate locks. Opening a chonky lock can be really satisfying, especially when it belongs in the scene, as these did.

➕ Pirate’s Cove rewarded attention to detail. We loved when seemingly aesthetic choices were key to solving puzzles.

➕/➖ Early on we uncovered a nifty device that would deliver hints. It was a cool prop, but it felt out of place in this experience. It felt like prop from a game with a different theme.

➖ /➕ We carried torches with us throughout the entire experience. Some scenes were uncomfortably dim, and the torches were essential. In other scenes, they were helpful for eyeing details. While it was annoying to always have a torch occupying one hand, they were beautiful, fun props, designed to fit the world. They were comfortable to hold and easy to use.

➖ There was a lot of reading in Pirate’s Cove. I found myself spending a bit too much time leaning over a desk, torch in hand, scanning through written materials. Even with the high quality journal, I would have preferred to have my eyes drawn to the carefully crafted set pieces and props.

➕ We battled our way through one puzzle, where the pen was mightier than the sword. We loved every minute of it.

➕ The character in Pirate’s Cove elevated it beyond a classic escape room. They created funny, memorable scenes. We commend the actor for performing the role for us in English, and doing a stellar job.

➖ While we appreciated the character interactions in the moment, they didn’t serve a larger story. This was a thematic, mission-based escape room without character or narrative cohesion. There was an opportunity for Fox in a Box Sherbrooke to level up in this regard.

➕ Fox in a Box guarded a secret with a classic puzzle enhanced to add challenge and humor, and perfectly integrated into the world.

➕ The finale was climactic. Our choice had consequences, but no matter what, the ending was exciting and befitting of the experience.

➖ At the start of the game, the load in took forever, so long that the two players who left the lobby second started to wonder if there was a problem with the game. It eventually became apparent what took so long to set up, but the payoff wasn’t worth it. Maybe there’s some shock value, but it wasn’t narratively justified and created gameplay that was more tedious than fun.

➕ Fox in a Box Sherbrooke has a spacious lobby with food and beverage options and games available. It’s a comfortable place to hang out before our after your escape room.

Tips For Visiting

• This game is available in French. We were the first team to play in English, and you might have to inquire about English bookings.
• There is a parking lot.
• They have drinks and food on site. We didn’t try it, but it smelled good!

Book your hour with Fox in a Box Sherbrooke’s Pirate’s Cove, and tell them that the Room Escape Artist sent you.